News
Neurosurgery focus at annual general meeting
On Tuesday the annual joint general meeting for companies owned by Region Västra Götaland was held in Skövde. Acting CEO Jenny Lundgren told the audience, consisting of politicians and other stakeholders in the region, about Sahlgrenska I.C. activities, development and the result of 2013.
Trendspotting at Sahlgrenska I.C. meeting point
Representatives from Region Västra Götaland, Sahlgrenska University Hospital and the life science industry gathered last Thursday at Sahlgrenska I.C:s yearly meeting point. On the topic ”Future trends in and beyond healthcare” Stefan Hyttfors, one of Sweden’s most appreciated speakers, headlined and Lotta Liljelund from the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs, talked about Swedish healthcare export from a national point of view.
Also, acting CEO Jenny Lundgren, took the opportunity to introduce herself.
Arab Health 2014 is underway
The 2014 Arab Health exhibition is underway. 3 900 exhibitors from 64 countries have gathered in Dubai International Exhibition and Convention Centre, UAE, and Sahlgrenska I.C. is one of them. The exhibition runs from January 27 through January 30 and the Sahlgrenska I.C. stand is located in Za’abeel Hall 3, no Z2A56.
For more information, contact Acting CEO Jenny Lundgren: + 46 (0)703 11 39 83.

Marika Qvist has resigned as CEO
Former Sahlgrenska I.C. CEO Marika Qvist has left her position to become the first CEO of Folktandvården Skåne AB. The public dental service of Region Skåne was corporatised as of January 1, 2014, and on short notice the Sahlgrenska I.C. board approved Qvist’s resignation.
Jenny Lundgren, in charge of the Sahlgrenska I.C. postgraduate programs, has been appointed Acting CEO during the period of January 1 2014 – September 30 2014.
A goodbye cermony was held on January 24, in which Region Västra Götaland, the Sahlgrenska I.C. board and employees thanked for five years well conducted and wished Marika Qvist good luck in the future.

Thought controlled prosthesis selected best science project
A successful collaboration between Sahlgrenska University Hospital and Chalmers University of Technology resulted in a thought controlled prosthesis. An innovation which has now been selected by IVA, the Swedish Royal Engineering Science Academy, as one of the best science projects in Sweden 2013. To read more, visit IVA. At the beginning of last year, the first surgery using the groundbreaking technique was performed performed at Sahlgrenska University Hospital.
Sahlgrenska I.C. at the first EquipAid conference
The international conference EquipAid was the first to be dedicated to medical equipment support projects for healthcare facilities in the field of international aid. The overall purpose with the conference was to create a platform and structured network for a more efficient cooperation between actors in the field as well as encourage synergies. During the two days a number of subjects were addressed in plenary sessions, round table discussions and in networking activities for the 200 participants who came from all corners of the world.
Dr. Jan Fridén at TEDxZürich 2013
Dr. Jan Fridén, professor and senior consultant of Hand Surgery at Sahlgrenska University Hospital, was one of the speakers at TEDxZürich in early October. Under the topic “Loss and Recapture of Hand Control”, he described his dedication to Tetraplegia Hand Surgery – the surgical technique used to restore hand control and function of patients with spinal cord injuries. Even in cases of complete paralyses of all four extremities, mobility can be restored through the transfer of functioning nerves and muscles. For example, grip function in the hand can provide a patient with the capacity to eat, dress and drive a manual wheelchair.

Study visit to Human Bridge
As a part of Sahlgrenska I.C:s ongoing actitivities to raise awereness about international development aid a study visit was arranged togheter with our main partner, Human Bridge, to their head office and main logisitical hub in Holsbybrunn.
Participating in the delegation were thirteen representatives from Regionservice, the dedicated department within the Region Västra Götaland for common services and, in addition, also one of our major donors of surplus medical equipment. The purpose of the visit was to enhance the knowledge on how Human Bridge operates and to share experiences and ideas on how to further improve the cooperation.
The programme included information and sharing sessions and also a well prepared visit in the warehouses. In this, we had the opportunity to study how donated medical equipment are maintained and reconditioned in preparation for being sent as development assistance, mainly to healthcare institutions in Sub-Saharan Africa.

A quick stop at Rehab Station Stockholm
During a visit in Stockholm, Sahlgrenska I.C. took the opportunity to visit Rehab Station Stockholm – a reputable rehabilitation clinic especially known for treatment of spinal cord injuries. Both Swedish and international patients are welcome to the clinic – either for day time training or accommodation in one of the wheelchair accessible rooms. A vast majority of the patients come from different parts of Sweden due to the agreements with county councils around the country.
Sahlgrenska I.C. is looking forward to a future collaboration regarding international patients who have received highly specialized care at Sahlgrenska University Hospital. Lars Holmström, Chief Operating Officer at Rehab Station Stockholm – thank you for having us!

Transplant researchers at Sahlgrenska receive funding
Suchitra Holgersson, professor in Transplantation Biology at the Sahlgrenska Academy and Michael Olausson, professor and chief physician at the Transplant Institute at Sahlgrenska University Hospital, were recently granted with SEK 400 000 from Gelinfonden. Both have an extensive experience within stam cell research.
The funding enables them to take this research further, more specifically to recreate arteries, blood vessels and liver tissue. In the future, recreating a whole liver with stam cells, and thus become an alternative to transplantation, will hopefully be possible. Even if we have a long way to go before this becomes a reality, Michael Olausson is positive that discoveries can be made that will allow us to take quick steps forward. – We began to transplant organs 60 years ago, but we have made more progress the past 10 years than the previous 50 years, says Michael Olausson. The research provides valuable knowledge for other medical areas as well. For example it gives researchers more information about how to store kidneys and other organs outside the body for a longer period of time.
To learn more about the upcoming research and the method behind it, please visit Sahlgrenska University Hospital.